Letter from Gena 23 Jan

Tis a sunny day in Kenscoff and outside the kids are enjoying the sunshine – some lying on mattresses, some on their wheelchairs and some washing the dishes. Inside the house is cold and the feeling is less relaxed. Those working inside (cook and people cleaning) are inside because they have to be and they are afraid and nervous. Each noise get the hearts racing again as everyone wonders if this time will be a big or a small tremor. The kids are not scared but the staff are terrified. And me? I am permanently shaking!! Not just me, all of us adults are this way. We do what we have to do and do our best to ensure the well being and security of the kids but make no mistake, we are also worried that another big one could come.

I was in Tabarre for the first earthquake (and also the second one)and my immediate thought was Kay Christine. I do not have great confidence in the building but thankfully it is fine and has survived both strong quakes with no damage. Our kids are sleeping inside – at my insistence because it is so cold and damp outside and we have many fragile kids. However, the rest of the kids in the orphanage are sleeping outside – on the basket ball court. They are too afraid to sleep indoors. My kids are not afraid to be indoors and indeed they all sleep very very well. Not so for us adults and personally I feel greatly the responsibility of having everyone indoors. We have all those from upstairs sleeping downstairs – girls in the therapy room and boys in the dining room. The more dependant kids are in their own dorm downstairs.The nights are long and lonely as we wait for it to get bright and the kids to wake up. At least if they are awake they have a
better chance of running outside if another earthquake occurs. I wonder what would happen to those that cannot walk if it happened when they are asleep. My plan is simple – if the shaking happens during the night, those that can get out will get out and I will stay with those that are bed ridden. Whatever will be will be but there is no way I am leaving those kids on their own. Probably no one would get out as those that are sleeping would never get up in time. I try and think positively and I put my trust in God but non the less I am scared. Not for myself – for the kids. So I tell myself this “ God brought me here to these kids so they are ultimately his responsibility. I can only do my best and the rest is up to him”.

You know during the first earthquake, I was very happy to hear that several of the staff stayed with the kids and shielded their bodies with their own. So if they were to die they were going to die together. The staff are brave and despite their fears they do as I ask and stay indoors to cook and food and take care of the kids as is required. With each tremor comes more fear and my heart aches for all of them. Sadly we lost one staff member. Dieudonne Massillion had been with us for just over 15 years. She was in her house and when the quake happened she ran outside to get her youngest son. While running, a wall at the side of her house fell on top of her and she was dead before she reached the hospital. The hard thing for all of us is that with all that is happening we do not have time to grieve for her. She was buried the following day and no one of us was at the funeral – I was still in PV- and the staff here were too busy keeping things together.
It is very sad and hard to accept. Dieudonne has been as much a part of the Kay Christine family as any of the kids and she was a very good worker. Almost two years ago her sister Olivia died from a stroke and Olivia also worked with us for many years. No one her can believe that in such a short time we have lost both of these sisters.
Our twins, Solina and Xiomala lost their sister Solita. Solita grew up here in the orphanage and she loved her sisters very much. She used to come to our house daily to braid their hair. Solita was living close to Port Au Prince (Delmas area) with other family members. She was eight months pregnant and she and her unborn baby died when the house they were living in collpased. Her brother told me that she died because she was trying to get him out. On January first Solita spent the day with us here in Kay Christine and her sisters were very happy. Indeed last summer she spend a month with us and we were going to employ her in Kay Ste. Germaine after her baby was born.
Many staff members lost friends or family. Carmelle lost her niece, Mme Maxime lost a nephew, Mme Casimir lost 2 nephews – and others lost in laws, cousins, friends etc.

Our program in Petionville (Kay Eliane)no longer exists since the building collapsed. We lost our wonderful volunteer Molly Hightower during this collapse. (That collapse also killed Ryan, a young man that was here visiting his sister Erin (a vol). Molly had been with us since June and she was the one that got the kids using the swimming pool and she also helped with the riding program and many other activities in our three places. Molly was a bright smile that brightened every day and we miss her a lot. We were very lucky that at the time of the quake, all our staff from Petionville had already left and also the children that attended that day. Luckily for us all the staff are fine – apart from loosing homes! We have heard from some of the parents that used to attend but not all. I know that one of the parents lost his wife. They have two handicapped children plus one other children and now this man is all alone and has no idea what he will do. Most
of my staff from Petionville have been in Tabarre this past week and some have been helping in the hospital.


In Tabarre(Kay Ste. Germaine) we lost one of our teachers. Marie Carmelle died in her house with her two small children. The youngest child was not yet one year old. Marie Carmelle had worked for many years in the kinder-garden in Ste. Helene but had transferred to our school in Ste. Germaine and she had spend one year with us. Marie Carmelle was loved by all the children and was full of life and energy. She always had a smile on her face and indeed when the school year started she told me: “ Gena, you don't have to worry, this school year we will make you so proud”.
All other staff members are fine TG. Many have lost their homes and all they owned. Yolene the directrice of our special needs school, has had a very difficult few days. Her husband was in his little shop when the building fell on top of him and she had no idea where he was as he never came home. She looked everywhere and eventually found him in a very serious state. He is paralised from the chest down, has a broken foot and was in danger of dying. Luckily we were able to arrange for him to be flown to the US so he has a chance to live. But if he does survive, the road ahead will not be an easy one as he will most likely remain paralised from the chest down. They were married in July.

Some of the parents of the children have phoned to say they are ok. Many have lost homes but are thankful to be alive. So far not everyone has checked in with us so we do not know how they are. We hope that on Monday most will come to the centre and we can plan the next weeks. At the moment we are giving lodging to a group of abandoned handicapped kids that are being cared for by Partners in Health. They are beautiful kids and will probably be with us for a month or so. The plan is that they will find a location of their own and move there.

What now? Lots of ideas – we always talked about Kay Ste. Germaine being used in the after noons and maybe serving adults – now there are so many people without limbs that we must see how we can help them and our centre might just be the place to get going a new program to serve these people – kids and adults.
But for now, we need the tremors to stop. We need to find a way to get some sleep as we are all tired and stressed and operating on nervous energy . We need to find a way to deal with our losses – and we have lost so much. We need to be able to sit down without shaking, take a shower without being afraid that the building will collapse with us as did with our friends Erin and Molly. So once the tremors stop, we can move forward. Until then, we continue to live in stress.

May God grant eternal rest to those that who have lost their lives. May God protect those of us living and may God grant good care to all those suffering.

Gena Heraty